Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-12-16-Speech-3-221"
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"en.20091216.16.3-221"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, a year or so ago, the situation in Goma, a city besieged by the CNDP troops led by Laurent Nkunda, was the primary concern of the Congolese authorities and the international community.
This requires better planning, the redefining of priorities and greater protection of the populations by MONUC, which is the main task stipulated in its mandate. The conditions in which MONUC may operate must also be clear and unambiguous. This is not about calling for MONUC to withdraw or disengage. A hasty withdrawal by MONUC would be disastrous, as it would create an even greater vacuum: the recent events in the Equator region, which are essentially one more symptom of the Congolese disease, prove this.
Clearly, it is also important to stop the political and economic collusion from which the FDLR continue to benefit in the region and elsewhere in the world, including in our Member States. The FDLR’s campaign is not a political campaign, but a criminal act of which the Congolese population is the main victim, and this is how the campaign and all those who are directly or indirectly associated with it must be treated. This is why a firmer stance is needed against all forms of trafficking. At the same time, beyond the disarmament, demobilisation, repatriation, reintegration and resettlement (DDRRR) process, the Rwandan and Congolese authorities must be more perceptive with regard to individuals who are not necessarily criminals.
That being said, the solution to a large part of the problem must also be found in the DRC. I am, of course, thinking of the local origins of the conflict. In this regard, the agreements of 23 March must be applied in full, otherwise, sooner or later, we will see the frustrations of the local populations gain the upper hand. This is absolutely essential if the stabilisation efforts and the will to revive economic activity in the Kivus are to succeed. At that point, the international community really will have a role to play.
However, the Kivus aside, I am also thinking of the huge mess that the DRC has become over the last 20 years or so. It is a country in which practically everything needs to be rebuilt, starting with the state, the absence of which is at the heart of all the problems.
In order to achieve this task, certain elements are crucial. Firstly, democracy must be consolidated. I am, of course, thinking of the local, legislative and presidential elections announced for 2011. Elections are one element of democracy, but we must not forget the need to continue to support the political institutions and forces in a dialectic relationship with the opposition. Without this, we would not be operating in a truly open political system.
The second element is without doubt the need to strengthen good governance. While it is true that, given the extent of its problems, the DRC cannot do everything at once, it clearly must demonstrate a solid political will if it is to have a chance of success. Parliament raised the issue of impunity. This is a good example, because it is a matter of political will and it also underpins the whole business of affirming the rule of law. The problem is that things cannot be done in isolation. The rule of law also requires a reform of the security sector and real progress in economic governance terms.
The scale of the challenges implies the need for long-term policies. However, that must not be an excuse for any lack of immediate action. I am thinking in particular of the issues of sexual violence and human rights, which Parliament has highlighted. Political will can play a crucial role here, and in this regard, we must welcome the commitment made by President Kabila to take a zero tolerance approach. This approach must now be applied.
The Commission, which, by the way, is already doing a great deal of work in this area (supporting the judiciary, helping victims), is prepared to continue to support the DRC. In this connection I have also expressed my wish for the International Criminal Court and the Commission to cooperate more closely in practice with regard to the fight against sexual violence.
A consolidated democratic system, good governance and political will: those are the key elements on which we would like to build our partnership as equals with the DRC.
Every effort has been made to prevent the worst. Promoting a political agreement, firstly between the DRC and Rwanda, and then between the Congolese Government, the CNDP and the other armed groups has made it possible, in the short term, to defuse the ticking time bomb of violence, although its potential for destabilisation today remains intact. It remains intact because the underlying causes have been addressed superficially and on the basis of a short-term, purely political rationale. Being faced with only poor solutions, the international community has opted for the least serious one; that is not a criticism, just an obvious fact, an observation.
The international community and the European Union have been unable to take the decision to deploy a protection force. The MONUC reinforcements that we have been requesting for over a year now are only just starting to arrive. The recent report by the United Nations group of independent experts and that by the Human Rights Watch organisation provide a damning account of the current situation that cannot be ignored or passed over in silence.
It is time now to address and to deal with these underlying causes, and to come up with lasting solutions. If this is to be done, however, it will require everyone’s cooperation – the cooperation of the Congolese and Rwandan governments in the first instance, and of MONUC, the United Nations, the rest of the international community and the European Union in the second instance.
There is no doubt that the political and diplomatic
between Rwanda and the DRC can be beneficial in terms of creating stability in the region and, if the will exists on both sides, can help establish a situation of peaceful coexistence and profitable cooperation between the two countries within a revitalised Economic Community of the Great Lakes Countries.
However, this is only the start of what remains a long and problematic journey. The FDLR issue is at the heart of the problem, as are all the associated sets of problems that it entails and which complicate the situation: the illegal exploitation of natural resources; the lack of protection for minorities; the impunity in a vast stateless area where the public authorities are not only incapable of controlling the territory but include representatives who are often part of the problem.
The Rwanda-DRC agreement has meant that the CNDP and the unacceptable demands of Laurent Nkunda have been temporarily brought under control. The agreement has simply resulted in the replacement of Laurent Nkunda by Bosco Ntaganda, who is more easily influenced and willing to reach any compromise whatsoever in exchange for immunity, which is in violation of all the international provisions on crimes against humanity and which neither Rwanda nor the DRC are entitled or able to grant him.
So far, the hasty integration of the CNDP into such an ineffective and totally chaotic army as the FARDC; the obtaining, by Bosco Ntaganda, of increased autonomous power resulting from the implementation of a parallel chain of command within the FARDC, for which the irregular payment of the soldiers and the absence of any form of discipline or hierarchy provides fertile ground; MONUC’s insufficiently controlled and gauged support for the military operations against the FDLR; and the non-existent response to the demands of the Rwandophone minorities are factors that are liable to create even more serious problems than those which we faced a year ago – problems that neither Rwanda nor the DRC will be capable of managing any longer.
The situation has scarcely improved against this backdrop: the humanitarian crisis continues without any obvious signs of improvement, as do the human rights violations, the sickening trend of violence, indeed of sexual atrocities, the impunity for all manner of crimes, and the pillaging of natural resources. One need only read the United Nations and the Human Rights Watch reports that I mentioned to understand the scale of this never-ending tragedy. It is clear that the actions aimed at preventing the FDLR from doing harm must continue, but not at any price, not without first having done everything it takes to minimise the risks that military pressure entails for innocent civilians."@en1
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